Mastermind groups

Who are the people you can identify, right now, that have an interest in you. You want to contact a couple of them and let them know you value them and would like to include them.

Try something like this in an email or shorten it for direct message:

Hello [insert name],

Hey there I hope all is well with you these days.

I just wanted to drop you a line to say that I value your opinion and enjoy having you [as a Twitter follower or Facebook friend] as someone I can reach out to on occasion .

Recently I’ve started a project that I’m passionate about but I need encouragement to stay on course.

Would you mind hearing about what I’m doing so that you can help keep me on track when I start to slack off? All I’ll need is the occasional email, direct message, and/or Skype call to make sure I report to you that I’m keeping on task.

Message me back when you have a moment, please, and we’ll take it from there!

Signed ~Me

Now, this isn’t a perfect template. I’m giving you ideas on how you can approach someone in your current circle of friends and followers. The point is, having a mastermind group or accountability partner is a major help.

Our group

Danny Iny, Paul Wolfe, and Caleb Wojcik and I are all in a mastermind group. You’ve likely seen Danny guest-posting his well-written and researched content on sites like Problogger and Copyblogger lately.

Paul, he’s a savvy guy for all things video marketing. I recommend you visit Paul’s site and opt-in for his 10 module course on How To Write an Ebook if you find you’re stuck creating your first (or next) ebook.

We meet every other Saturday on Skype to discuss our goals. We have a hot seat session at the beginning of our call to see where we all stand. Did we meet our stated goals?

Why or why not?

What will we accomplish in the next two weeks?

Then we chat about what we think of our future projects. It’s great. It holds us accountable to each other and we have victories to share on the next call.

Consider finding a group, even if it’s just one or two other people and open up a call. Flesh out your projects, your ideas, your desires for the future. You may be surprised what you come up with next.

Stay accountable

Give a mastermind group some thought for your project. Think about all those retired projects and dreams that you packed away. The ones you were excited about but then “shelved” because you just couldn’t get them done while living your life.

Write down your goals and pick up the phone or compose a new message to reach out to your accountability partner. Then work diligently to make sure the next week of experiences is one you’ll be proud to share with the group.

Feel free to contact me here if you’re lacking a support network and we can chat.

Thanks, Catarina, it’s working well so far. The support group comes in handy even when you’re missing your goals. You make sure that if you have a slow week you aim high the next and knock the next week out of the park.

We can be so self-sabotaging on our own, amazing isn’t it? I haven’t noticed that training courses have been pushing the accountability factor lately. That’s a good thing and I’m sure it helps reduce the product creator’s support ticket count

You’ll appreciate this: the mastermind idea all started with a blog comment It was on Danny’s site and I had made mention of something in passing and then Danny jumped right on making the suggestion a reality. We emailed back and forth about other members that we thought would be a value-add and contacted them. It all just worked itself out after that comment!

Jon, great advice. having an accountability partner is very helpful. I have a coach, but I do think that even a small group of people on top of my coach would be a helpful addition because I would also be ‘giving back’ as well.

I loved the idea of your template to send out. It is a great way for people to build relationships and help one and other along.

Thanks for the great reminder and suggestions for those who feel alone.

Hi Jon! I completely agree with you about the value of being in a mastermind group. The support is invaluable!!

But so is the accountability. I have been in several wonderful mastermind groups, but the smallest has been my most helpful of late. I have a writing buddy and we talk every week about where we are in our writing projects.

As I was writing the ebook I just published, she kept encouraging me along the way and reminding me that the point is to get it published (because I wrote one over a year ago that I never launched). I was SOOO grateful to be accountable to her about whether or not I got it done and so proud when I finished & published it!

So you’ll get no argument from me! Mastermind groups are the way to have the kind of accountability you need.

Well you’re buddy did right by you. She knew that the main hurdle was publishing it. That alone is the biggest accomplishment. I won’t lie, there are a solid half dozen or so projects parked on my hard drive that may never see the interwebs. But that’s okay, I’m shipping new products now and apparently so are you! Congrats to you (I saw your post announcing your book).

Hey Dev! Mastermind groups are quite helpful. Depending on the type of project you’re engaged in I suppose they may or may not be of use. They do require a block of time to commit to but it’s time invested (not time spent).

Those individual basis programs can sometimes turn into a movement all unto themselves so keep tweaking I wish you well with it and yep, Danny is a group asset for us. You’re posting high-quality and useful info at your site – just wanted to say I’ve noticed (and commented).